Fruit left for gem of a girl (5)

I believe the answer is:

pearl

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'gem of a girl' is the definition.
'Pearl' can be an answer for 'girl'. I'm unsure of the 'gem of a' bit.

'fruit left' is the wordplay.
'fruit' becomes 'pear' (pear is a kind of fruit).
'left' becomes 'l' (common abbreviation).
'pear'+'l'='PEARL'

'for' is the link.

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for pearl that I've seen before include "one regularly in stitches" , "Paragon" , "piece of wisdom" , "Oyster's gem" , "See 12" .)

I've seen this clue in The Guardian.

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